Night signaling apparatus



(No Model.) 3 sheets-sheet 1. J. WALL. NIGHT SIGNALING APPARATUS.

No. 335,489. Patented Peb. 2, 1886.

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(No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 2. J WALL.

NIGHT SIGNALING APPARATUS.

No. 335,489.` Patented Feb. 2, 1886.

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Q.' wwe( UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOSEPH WALL, OF BOOTLE, COUNTY OF LANCASTER', NGLAND.

NIGHT SIGNALING APPARATUS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 335,489, dated February2. 1886.

Application led March 23, 1885. Serial No. 159,869.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, J osErH WALL, of Bootle, in the county of Lancaster,England, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in NightSignaling Apparatus, (for which I 'have received a patent in GreatBritain, No.

7,391, of date May 8, 1884;) and I do hereby declare that the followingis a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, which willenable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and usethe same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and toletters of reference marked thereon,which form a part of thisspecification.

Figure lis a front elevation of my invention. Fig. 2 is a rear elevationof the same. Fig. 3 is a top plan. Fig. 4 is a detail showing the meansof holding the frame stationary at any point. Fig. 5 is averticalsection of one of my lamps. Fig. 6 is a transverse section of the outerand inner cylinders of my lamp. Fig. 7 is a detail showing the rod formoving the obscuring-disks with its handle and the set-screw for holdingit xed at any point. Fig. 8 is a front view of the outer cylinder of alamp, showing the springs for holding it and the inner cylindertogether, and the pin for holding the inner cylinder tXed at any point.Fig. 9 shows a back view of the outer cylinder of the middle lamp withthe door and a direction-plate indicating the various signs or signalsof a code to be used in the signaling set therein. Fig. 10 is a sideview of one of the inner cylinders, showin g the shades.

Same letters show like parts.

My invention relates to night signaling apparatus for ships,light-ships, vessels, Src., and also for land use, as from light-houses,towers, Src.

My invention is mounted upon a proper base orsupport, a.. Upon this baseais mounted a table, b, capable of being revolved upon the base a. Thebase and table are placed together at c, and are held by a bolt, d. (SeeFig. 4.) The bolt is rigid on the base, and the table revolves thereon.A pin, d', prevents rotation of the bolt. The revolving table b is heldat any point by the set-screw e,

(No model.) Iatented in England May 8, 1834, No. 7,391.

passing through a hole in the lower part ol the table b, and, whenscrewed up, bearing against the bolt d. This set-screw is on the rearside of the table b, turns with it, and is thus always convenient forthe signaler who stands behind the table. The turning of the table b isfor the purpose of keeping the signaling apparatus properly fronted orfocused toward the vessel being signaled, no mattei' how the two vesselsmay change position while communicationis going on. The set-screw isplainly for holding the table in any desired position. The table bcarries also three obscuring-disks, fg h. These are attached to a.horizontal sliding rod, t', and so move simultaneously. The rod runsthrough guides j, and is worked by a handle, 7c. A set-screw, Z, in .oneof the guides enables the operator to hold the rod fixed at any point ofits motion. The purpose of the obscuring-disks fg h is to shut oft, whendesired, the light emitted from the lenses of the lamps A B C, thusseparating or dividing the different signals made.

The lamps A B O are composed of two cylinders-an outer andan innerone.The outer one is opaque, made of metal or any proper material, and hasthe aperture m, for the emis` sion of horizontal rays of light. Thiscylinder is set and secured into a socket prepared for its reception,(illustrated at a in Figs. l and 2.) The three lamps are thus located onthe table b. The inner cylinder is placed with in the outer or opaqueone, and is supported by a shoulder, w', which is arranged to overlapand rest upon the upper edge of the outer cylinder, and bears thereonduring the rotation of the inner cylinderwithin the outer cylinder. Theinner cylinder is provided with four equal portions, made up,respectively, ot' red glass, green glass, a wire-gauze, and an opaqueportion. As this inner cylinder is turned within the outer one,when thelamp is lighted within the two, the lamp shows such a colored light asthe glass before the aperture m of the outer cylinder would emit. Thewire-gauze shows the white light, and the gauze is used in order to sotone it down as that it will not be so brilliant as to eclipse at adistance the other and softer colors, when used with it-'that is tosay,when the white is used in one lamp andthe red or green,or both, inthe others.

The lamps orilluminating agents, electric or other, are placed withinthe inner cylinders, n, as illustrated in Fig. 5.

I will letter the outer cylinders 0.

The lamp is carefully protected from gusts of air likely to diminish itsbrilliancy or extinguish it. This is accomplished as follows: The body pis slightly raised from the iioor of the outer cylinder. In the iioorare niadelittle holes a3, to admit currents of air. (See Fig. 5.) Thesestrike against the bottom of the body @and then pass off horizontallyinto the lamp and around the flame, so that their force is thusdestroyed. Over the lanip-chimney is the disk q. Then comes the chimneyof the inner cylinder. This chimney of the inner cylinder is composed ofthe parts r, s, and t, as illustrated in Fig. 5. The lantern has alsothe aperture m, with a proper lens therein for emitting parallel raysoi' light, and a reiiector, u, within. The two cylinders 'n o are heldtogether by the springs U on the outer cylinder. These have shouldersc3,which pass over the top edges of the two cylinders, when one isplaced within the other, and thus unite them. One of these springs alsocarries a small pin, v, which penetrates holes b3 in the inner and outercylinders, to hold the inner one, n, at any position into which it hasbeen turned in signaling. When the inner cylinder is to be turned, thespring which carries the pin o is drawn back, in order to draw the pinout of one of the holes b3 in which it may happen to be. This allows theoperator to turn the inner cylinder by grasping the arrowy in his hand,and so turning it as he may wish.

w is the top or cover, and is connected with the inner cylinder, n.Rising from this top of the inner cylinder and turning with it areuprights ,which carry the horizontal arrow y. This, besides serving as ahandle, instructs the sailor how to turn the inner cylinder to show thesignal desired. He has only to remember the ships lights-bright ahead,green to the right, red to the left. If it is desired to show green, soturn the inner cylinder as that the arrow of that lamp points to hisright as he stands behind the apparatus. If he wants to show red, arrowmust be turned to left; if bright, arrow must point in front of him, andif dark, the arrow must point toward himself.

Each lamp is furnished with alittle door, z. This door can be raised, soas to enable the operator to examine the condition ofthe lamps. This isdone through the gauze of the inner cylinder, which is turned againstthe aperture of the outer cylinder when an examination is to be made.The aperture left open by the raising of the door is guarded with awiregauze, a', of the inner cylinder. A pin, b', attached to the outerside of the outer cylinder, o, enables the operator to trim the lampswithout taking them off the table b. When the wire-gauze is turned up tothe little door z, the pin b can be thrust 4througha hole, at, of thegauze, to pickor trim the wicks The middle lamp has on the back side anilluminated direction-plate, c', to guide the operator and preventmistakes. This direction-plate embraces all the combinations of lightsand colors required for signaling. These colors are produced on sometranslucent substance, and are lighted up by the light within the lamp.The openings m are seen in Fig. 1() below the holes b3. They are four innumber, and are to admit light to the direction-plate c', and arearranged quartering, so as to correspond to the four working positionsof the cylinder, and so that one of them can perform its office when thecylinder is in any one of' said fourworking positions. The display ofthe three or more differently-colored lights is intended to besimultaneous, produced by the removal or withdrawal of the opaqueobscuring-disks from in front of the lenses.

Each 'combination of colors-one in each lamp-may refer to a letter whichhas a peculiar phrase for its meaning. For instance, a vessel might showtwo red lights with a white in the center, and then another showing twogreens with a black at center, which would be the letters N C, meaningIn distresswant assistance.7

My code of signals is adapted to the Conimercial Code-Book ofDay-Signals, and each signal from the apparatus is to be read as a ilagwould be by day. It will be recognized that in nights, especially thelong winter nights of the higher latitudes, navigation stands in need ofnight-signals adapted to the commercial code of day-signals.

I do not desire to limit myself to the particular code of signals I haveused herein as an illustration.

I reserve the right to use in combination with the devices I have hereindescribed any code or system of signals useful for the purpose or whichI may originate.

What I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent ofthe United States, is-

1. In combination with the lamps A B C, the support a., table I),withits sockets for the reception of the lamps, and the sliding rod i',with its obscuring-disks f g 7i, as herein set forth.

2. In combination, the lamps A, B, and C, each having an inner cylinder,fn., and an outer cylinder, o, provided with a shoulder-spring,

- U, as set forth.

3; In combination, the lamps A, B, and C, having outer and innercylinders, o f/L, provided with holding-pins and formed with holestherefor, as set forth.

4. The lamps A B C, having outer and inner cylinders, in combinationwith arrows y, attached to the inner cylinders, as set forth.

5. The combination, with the outer cylin- IOO IIO

ders, o, each provided with an aperture, m, In testimony that I claimthe foregoing as and a. 1ens,of the inner cylinders, n, rotatable my ownI aHiX my signature in presence of xo Within the outer, and having thecolored two Witnesses.

glasses, wire-gauze, and opaque part, as set 5 forth JOSEPH VALL. y 6.The lamps A C, in combination with the Witnesses: f' middle lamp, B,having on the rear side the FRANK W. ROBINSON,

direction-plate c', as set forth. JOHN P. KERRIGAN.

